The present invention relates to photonics chips and, more specifically, to structures for an optical switch, structures for an optical router, and methods of fabricating a structure for an optical switch.
Photonics chips are used in many applications and systems including, but not limited to, data communication systems and data computation systems. A photonics chip integrates optical components, such as waveguides, optical switches, and bends, and electronic components, such as field-effect transistors, into a unified platform. Among other factors, layout area, cost, and operational overhead may be reduced by the integration of both types of components.
An optical switch routes an incoming optical signal from an input to a destination output without converting the optical signal to an electrical signal. Optical switches may be formed, for example, using Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) modulators. A disadvantage of this type of switching is that MZI modulators exhibit a weak electro-optic effect and, for that reason, must have a large form factor that results in a large footprint on the photonics chip. During operation, MZI modulators also tend to consume large amounts of power.
Improved structures for an optical switch, structures for an optical router, and methods of fabricating a structure for an optical switch are needed.